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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Health Economics
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1152710

Measuring the Harm of Sugar Sweetened Beverages & Internalities Associated with It

Provisionally accepted
Ningxin Ding Ningxin Ding *Jaikishan Desai Jaikishan Desai
  • Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Obesity, partly driven by sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption, significantly raises the risk of type-2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, imposing substantial health and economic burdens. This study aims to measure the monetary value of health harm from SSB consumption, and the internalities associated with it, which are critical in determining the socially optimal tax rate. Using contingent valuation, we surveyed 293 Wellington, New Zealand residents on their willingness to pay (WTP) for reductions in diabetes, stroke, and heart disease risks associated with SSB intake. Logistic regression analysis revealed the marginal WTP for a 1% risk reduction in diabetes, stroke, and heart disease as $404.86, $809.04, and $1,236.84, respectively. Based on these values, our estimate shows the marginal harm from SSB consumption is approximately NZ$17.37 per litre in New Zealand, with internalities of NZ$6.43 per litre, suggesting an optimal tax rate of NZ$6.49 per litre. Imposing such a tax would double or triple the price of SSBs in New Zealand.

    Keywords: Sugar sweetened beverages, Internalities, Contingent Valuation, WTP (willingness-to-pay), Optimal tax rate

    Received: 28 Jan 2023; Accepted: 13 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Ding and Desai. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Ningxin Ding, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.